Sports

Rockies home opener 2013: Colorado has a lot to prove to fans this season

Baseball paradise awaits fans streaming into Coors Field on Friday afternoon for the Rockies' 2013 home opener.

They'll be greeted by spring temperatures in the 70s, purple balloons and red-white-and-blue bunting. As a bonus, the Rockies are on a two-game winning streak and above .500 for the first time since last April.

But beneath the optimism of spring, sunshine and baseball, discontent percolates in Rockies Nation. An online Denver Post poll this week asked fans where they thought the Rockies would finish in the National League West standings. Nearly 64 percent predicted the team would finish last, as they did a year ago.

Photos: Rockies

"It's sort of a mixed bag," owner Dick Monfort said Thursday afternoon while conducting a media tour touting $6 million in upgrades at the ballpark. "We have our avid fans. But then I just got an envelope when I was back in my office, and it was from a guy who sent me a purple shirt. He wrote that he used to be a fan but is no longer.

"So, that's one extreme end. Then you have those who love the park and love the team. I think most people hope for us to do better. They don't think we're going to be a World Series winner this year, but they think we can win 80 or so games."

That would be a significant improvement. The Rockies' 98 losses last season were the most in franchise history, and the 35-46 home record also was a new low.

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Sports talk-show host Les Shapiro, who has worked in this market since 1984, said area baseball fans, who have watched the Rockies sink 50 games under .500 over the past two seasons, have run out of patience.

"Much more so than in the past, the phone calls and texts we get during our show come from fans who are very frustrated and somewhat depressed about the Rockies," said Shapiro, who co-hosts an afternoon radio show on 102.3-FM ESPN. "I mean, it's the start of baseball season and I want to talk about baseball, but a lot of the fans just don't want to hear it."

Aurora resident James Bergman, 37, attended 15 games last summer. He doesn't plan on attending any this year.

"I won't be going back to Coors until the (Rockies) prove they want to win baseball games and not just take my money," he said. "I love baseball, and I love the ballpark, but this is my way of protesting."

Attendance, however, has remained relatively strong, especially in light of the team's record the past two years. The Rockies drew 2.63 million fans to Coors Field last season, an average of 32,475 per game, ranking 13th in the majors. That was 3,448 fewer fans per game than in 2011, the biggest drop since 2005, when the average home attendance tumbled from the previous year by 5,666 fans to 23,930. That was the low-water mark in franchise history.

In 2008, the season after their magical Rocktober run to the World Series, the team's season-ticket base rose to about 18,000. That number has dropped, but the Rockies won't say by how much.

"We had normal attrition, and we are very proud of our season-ticket renewals for 2013," said Sue Ann McClaren, Rockies vice president of ticket sales, operations and services. "We have a better-than-90- percent renewal rate from last year and are still receiving renewals daily."

The base of the Rockies' support comes from fans such as Englewood residents Cindy Culkin and her husband, Bruce Weyler. They've shared season tickets with a group of friends since the Rockies' inception in 1993. Culkin attends about a dozen games a year and considers herself a huge baseball fan. She cherishes her club-level seats and has never considered boycotting the team.

"We are 100 percent committed," Culkin said, while acknowledging that it was tough to sit through an ugly 2012 season.

"It seemed like it droned on and on and there didn't seem to be much enthusiasm or passion," she said. "But we continue to hope. We're really excited about having Walt Weiss back as the manager. We loved him as a player."

Left-handed pitcher Jeff Francis, who will start Friday's game against San Diego, understands the fans' frustration. But he also believes they will stick by the team.

"I know what it's like being a fan. I mean, it's not easy being a Canucks fan, either," said Francis, who was born and grew up in Vancouver, British Columbia. "I mean, the Canucks are a pretty good hockey team, but they don't make it through the playoffs very often.

"So, I know it can be frustrating. But when you have been through the garbage — which is what we've been through here recently — that makes the winning so much sweeter."

Francis, who returned to the team in the offseason, led the Rockies with 17 victories in 2007, so he has heard both the boos and the cheers of a sellout crowd in LoDo.

"This is a great sports town," he said. "The fans have been terrific for us. And the taste that I've had of winning here? It's special. Very special."

Homecoming for the Rockies

A look at the schedule of opening-day festivities Friday at Coors Field:

11 a.m.-1:15 p.m. — Opening Day Fest, with food trucks, carnival games for kids, music by Austin Young and No Difference, the Hazel Miller Band and Jake Schroeer, and appearance by members of the 1993 Rockies.

1:30 p.m. — Military march, followed by introduction of the 1993 Rockies team.

2:10 p.m. — First pitch, Jeff Francis vs. Padres

Coors field highs and lows

Since Coors Field opened in 1995, fans have flocked to LoDo to watch baseball. A closer look at the Rockies' attendance:

1995 48,037: Attendance for Rockies' home games ranked first in the National League and first overall

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